Kitchen, Kids, and
Kettlebells
Part I…
So I’m a KB (kettlebell) Master of
Sport…what does that mean?!
I must admit, 2
years ago, when I first picked up a kettlebell, I had doubts that I could
actually achieve a rank or be the least bit successful at such a sport. I’ve been “athletic” my whole life – growing
up on a farm, slinging hay bales and keeping up with my 3 older brothers. I was always stronger than most other girls
and even some guys. But when I picked up
a 20Kg (44lbs.) bell for the first time, I knew I’d met my match. Picking it up was one thing – no big deal –
lifting it up and over my head multiple times in a span of 10 minutes was a
whole different obstacle.
So how did I get to this point.....and
why?
My mother
battled cancer most of my childhood and adult life; so I was accustomed to
meeting challenges “head on” and achieving certain “milestones.” I knew at a young age I wanted to be a wife,
mother, and teacher. Along the way, I
added food and wellness-blog writer as well as musician and runner to that
list. Lots of things seemed to come
naturally to me, others not so much. I’m
a pretty good cook and an even better eater, so writing about food and its’
nourishing characteristics was a breeze.
Music has always been a source of relaxation, therapy, and enjoyment; I
can’t remember a time I didn’t know how to play the piano. However, I was never a very good runner, but
when my husband, Jeremiah (Dirty Gym II coach) began running to prepare for the
military, I ran along beside him. Five minute run/walk intervals led to my
first half-marathon as well as countless 5 and 10K’s. In my experience, becoming an endurance
athlete required months of training long runs.
But, by the grace of God, I set a goal and enjoyed the accomplishment
that followed.
When Jeremiah
began working with Marcus Mucheck (Dirty Gym owner/coach), to begin his journey
from endurance to strength, I followed along and started to test my own
strength in a different sport. I found elements
of power-lifting to be quite rewarding, but with a full-time job and 3 little
girls, it was difficult for me to keep up with the required training time. That’s when coach Mucheck introduced me to
the sport of Kettlebells. As I watched
other women compete and earn their ranks, I decided I wanted to join them. Two years later - October 13, 2012 - this
wife, teacher and mother earned the Kettlebell Master of Sport rank at the
Beast of the East Kettlebell competition (my very first competition) in
Connecticut.
My road to rank
was not a short one, nor always an easy one, especially with a family and a teaching
career. When I entered the sport of
kettlebells, my family lived on a small farm in Ohio. My gym was a barn and my partners were my
chickens, my daughters’ horses, and our cow.
Yep…you heard correctly…our cow!
Our family was living a very self-sustained life on our little farm and
I was swinging my kettlebells in a barn!
The neighbors probably thought me a little odd; come to think of it,
most people think me a little odd. Oh
well. Along the way, I dealt with the
frustration of my body and its limitations…as most athletes do at one point or
another. I discovered that my shoulders
where going to be a source of imperfection…the rotation required for back squatting
had left them really aggravated at me. Arthritis
in my shoulder and tendinitis in the heads of my biceps were a constant pain. However, I changed some things in my diet to
decrease inflammation and left certain elements of power-lifting behind as I
focused on my kettlebell training. As my
training progresses, I was also fortunate to have the insight and instruction
of some very accomplished kettlebell athletes like Marty Farrell and Lorna
Kleidman.
Then a little
over a year ago, our military family received the news that we would be
relocating to New England. The move was
very stressful for our family and we not only hated to leave our home, our farm
and our barn, we also hated to leave good friends and training partners/coaches
behind in Dayton.
So that’s when The Dirty Gym II was
founded.
Here,
we train power-lifters, kettlebell lifters, cross-fitters, and those who just want
to improve their physical fitness. www.facebook.com/TheDirtyGymII
So what does it mean to be a Master
of Sport?
Simply put, it
means being able to perform a minimum number of repetitions of a certain lift
during a specific amount of time. Below
you will find the link to requirements necessary to achieve individual
rankings. Master of Sport in the Long
Cycle requires a lifter in the 72Kg weight class to perform 118 repetitions
with a 20Kg bell within 10 minutes. I
achieved Master of Sport rank by completing 127 repetitions in the 10 min. Long
Cycle.
So what’s next?
Well, it looks
like my bells need to get bigger! Back
to the gym!
*Special thanks
to my husband/coach Jeremiah True (Dirty Gym II), coach Marcus Mucheck (Dirty
Gym – Dayton), Matthew Swartout, (Dirty Gym-Dayton) and KB Master of Sport
Marty Farrell.
www.facebook.com/dirtygym
www.facebook.com/dirtygym
